Wind and Colief

[moll29]

Hi everyone,

I am new to the forum, although for the past couple of weeks I have been looking on the forum for different bits of advice. I would really welcome some advice (before i start pulling my hair out!!) on the current problem i seem to be having with my baby. I have a seven week old baby boy who is a joy to have, however at the moment we seem to be having a real problem with bottom wind! I have looked everywhere for information and advice and thought now was the time to post here to see if anyone can offer any advice. The problem started when he was five weeks old where we went through a week of him not being himself and not sleeping. He would strain, pull his legs up, go red in the face, clenth his fists as if trying to poo however nothing would come out. He has never been a baby to have a poo regularly, usually going every three days and according to my Health Visiter this was normal (??). It got to a stage when he was five weeks old that he hadn't had a poo for five days and really seemed to constanty be trying to pass wind or poo. Even when he did eventually poo ( by me reluctantly putting sugar in a bit of cool water for him) he would still constantly strain and cry out when doing so, as if trying to pass wind. On the advice from my Health Visiter i started Colief one week ago (after trying Infracol, Dentinox and Gripe Water). Initially the Colief worked wonders where he was like a different baby- not straining,crying etc. However now I'm beginning to question is it working! Quite frankly I'm making myself go insane thinking about it, researching and worrying!! Although he is now having a poo regularly (sometimes three/four times per day) often it is loose (which I know can happen with Colief) and i just worry it is too loose. has anyone experienced this with Colief? Also, I find that often he is still straining trying to pass wind mostly at night. This seems to really disturb his sleep, waking him up. It can go on for hours where he will really be fighting to pass wind and when he does it is so loud!

I do baby massage on him, which does seem to help sometimes. I use Dr Brown bottles and when feeding he winds fine. I do find that Gripe Water can alleviate him sometimes however should i even be using Colief and Gripe Water together? My Health Visiter seemed to think it was ok, however if i'm being honest I haven't got much confidence in my Health Visiter! I noticed you can get formula milk for Colic and constipation- would this help?

can anyone please offer any experience/information/advice- anything!!

Thank you

 

[Jules8987]

I feel ur pain! My 6 week old son has the same issue. He struggles mostly when feeding now and at times he strains that hard he makes himself sick which can b quite distressing! I would love to b able to tell u how to help your lo but i am none the wiser myself! All i keep getting told is at this age their gut is immature and they will grow out of it! We have been using infacol from about a week old and this seems to have helped burping but does nothing for wind at the other end! I hav asked the health visitor and a doctor if mayb a change of formula would help but as yet have no answer! They dont seem to be too concerned but i hate to see my baby in so much distress! What formula are you currently using?

xxx

 

[moll29]

Yes I keep hearing that a baby has an immature stomach at this age and they grow out of it by three/four months! My health visiter didn't seem too concerned either, which is fine for her who doesn't have to go through it! Its awful seeing your baby in pain or distressed. I'm using Aptimil, however I have seen there is an Aptimil milk for colic and constipation. Sometimes I just dont know whether I am doing right or wrong!!

 

[ValentinesGal]

Welcome! :wave: DS has similiar gas issues. We switched to a generic enfamil gentle ease, playtex ventaire bottles and we alternate feedings with gas drops and gripe water. We also try to do the massages and leg 'crunches'/bicycle kicks frequently through the day, before bed and when he's awake and passing wind. Overall, we've seen a huge improvement. DS always passes a LOT of wind for 10-15 min after we put him down for bed and most of the time, we just leave him be and he'll go right to sleep after doing so. I discovered that unless he was really upset, if I didn't rush in right away, he would just fuss and go to sleep on his own. I guess its just his way of relaxing

Also, agreeing with Jules, it is normal for them to make a lot of noise/straining to poo or pass wind and from what I've read on it, will go away with age. From what I read and what the Dr. said its just that they have to work extra hard to get these things out because the 'system' is immature and that 99% of the time, they're not in any real pain.

 

[Jules8987]

Im using sma gold and was thinking of changing to cow and gate for colic and constipation but my son isnt constipated so didnt want to do it without checking with an expert but they are in no rush to give me an answer! My cousin had a wee boy who was quite colicky an constipated and she changed formulas and was using dr browns bottles and she claims this helped her so it may be worth a try. I honestly think it is just a matter of trial and error and finding what works for you and your baby! You could get a tin of that formula and try your boy on that and see if things improve

 

[moll29]

Thank you for the advice ValentinesGal. I have never heard of Enfamil before just had a look on the internet to find more out about it. I will keep up the massage and do so all through the day. I'm going to keep using the Gripe Water, I've really just been giving him it at his last feed but may give him it during the day too on one feed. I'm really tempted to change formula milk too to see if that makes any difference. I suppose its worth a try, I'll try anything to help him.

 

[hulahoop09]

I totally understand where you are coming from with the wind. My LO had really bad wind to the point where she would scream. Turns out she has cmpi which added to her pain but even now she does have terrible bottom wind but just not painful as her milk has been changed. I think if you feel the Comfort milk may help all you can do is give it a shot. I find infacol, gripe water etc dont work for my lo.

xx

 

[Amy31]

My LO was like this on SMA, Cow and Gate Comfort and then I changed to Hipp Organic and he is much better on it. I also use colief.

 

[moll29]

i think I will definately change his milk, I can only but try to see if this will help. If i did change to comfort milk, am I right in thinking I wouldn't need to use the Colief drops? Does anyone know?

 

[moll29]

Amy#!

Amy31 do you find Colief makes your baby have really runny poos? Is this normal?

 

[MissK]

If u are using comfort milk u dont need colief as the comfort milk is eaiser to digest which is what the colief does to the milk, my son is on comfort c&g n does have mre runny poos n more greener but thats normal its been a god send as colief made him worse :/

Hope this helps i feel ur pain ive done everything in the book to help colic and he still suffers x

 

[xdxxtx]

My baby got my milk allergy (NOT lactose allergy but cow's milk itself). He reacts to it the same way I do - with lots of painful wind! I switched him to soy, since that's the only kind of milk I can safely drink, and now he's just fine.

 

[gingerwhinger]

My baby started with this endless staining issue at 2 weeks and I changed him over to cow and gate comfort which has made things a shed load better! He still only really does one poo a day and it still takes some pushing But it is much better so worth a shot.